<\/span><\/h2>\nThe session started with a drive in a car that was built as a joint venture that wouldn\u2019t be necessary anymore. Mercedes teamed up with its Formula 1 partner McLaren to introduce the Mercedes-McLaren SLR in 2003. Today, such a car would be designed by the AMG team, but Mercedes didn\u2019t fully own AMG until 2005. The car was built until 2009, and it went out with a special-edition model called the SLR Stirling Moss Edition. The Moss Edition built on the 722 model, using the same 641-hp supercharged 5.4-liter V-8<\/strong> backed by the same 5-speed automatic transmission. It sported a speedster body style with no roof, a small windscreen in front of the driver, and a removable structural beam between the seats for added rigidity.<\/p>\nJust getting into the SLR for my drive showed how serious this beast was about performance. It required a big step over a wide door sill that creates a monocoque feel and contributes to sturdy structural rigidity. Once inside, the SLR provided a unique experience. It had more of a bathtub feel than any car I\u2019ve ever driven due to the high beltline matched by the high-set center beam. The nose seemed to exist in a different zip code to accommodate the front-mid-engine layout, and the maybe three-inch-tall windscreen provided no protection from anything that might fly up from the road.<\/p>\n
With a pair of photographers hanging out of a 2025 Mercedes-Benz AMG SL 63 S E-Performance in front of our merry line of vintage cars, speeds were extremely limited, but some of the SLR\u2019s performance bona fides showed through. The steering had nice heft, quick reactions, and good road feel. The car\u2019s attitude stayed very flat in the couple of corners I could take at any speed. And when I lagged back and hit the throttle the supercharged V-8 erupted with quick moments of burst before I had to let off. With brake-by-wire, though, the brake pedal felt unresponsive before setting off, but then settled in as predictable the few times I had to use it.<\/p>\n
I\u2019d love another shot in the SLR without a photo car in the way, and I would predict proper supercar performance for the era that is likely surpassed by today\u2019s top AMG GT and AMG SL models.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n
![\"1997](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/1997-renntech-e60-rs_100962792_l.webp\" "\\"1997")
<\/p>\n
1997 Renntech E60 RS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1997](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/1997-renntech-e60-rs_100962790_l.webp\" "\\"1997")
<\/p>\n
1997 Renntech E60 RS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1997](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/1997-renntech-e60-rs_100962788_l.webp\" "\\"1997")
<\/p>\n
1997 Renntech E60 RS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/span>1997 Renntech E60 RS<\/span><\/h2>\nThe Renntech E60 RS would certainly be an AMG model today, but in 1997 when this car was built for comedian Jerry Seinfeld Mercedes needed help to turn its E 420 sedan into a performance machine. While AMG, a separate German tuner at the time, did work on the car, Mercedes also worked with the Florida shop Renntech<\/strong> to get the most out of its sport sedan. The changes to the E 420 were numerous. The 4.2-liter V-8 was punched out to 6.0 liters and power rose from 275 hp to 434 hp. This unlocked a 4.6-second 0-60 mph time, down from 6.7 seconds. A limited-slip rear differential was added for traction out of corners, and the transmission was swapped for a beefier 5-speed automatic. Renntech hammered its own wider fenders and installed its own body kit. The Florida company also lowered the suspension, reworked the rear subframe and rear wishbones, and installed stiffer sway bars front and back. The interior received white gauge faces with a 200-mph speedometer from Renntech, a Renntech sport steering wheel, and a blueberry and gray color scheme, as well as \u201cJ.S. Edition\u201d sill plates. All told, the modifications added $115,000 to the $50,000 or so price of an E 420.<\/p>\nAfter driving the Stirling Moss SLR, the Renntech\u2019s steering initially felt too light. That\u2019s a shame because hydraulic power steering usually has good feel, but it was rather dull here. Otherwise, however, the Renntech E60 RS was an absolute pleasure to drive. The work Renntech did to the rear end really paid off. The speeds increased a bit for these laps and the car remained impressively flat in corners. The rear end felt solid and planted, making it easy for me to picture Seinfeld snaking the Renntech E 60 down Mulholland Drive at night after a long day of shooting his sitcom.<\/p>\n
My initial impression from the track was that I\u2019d love to drive this car daily. A later street drive only reinforced that impression, as the ride quality remained rather forgiving despite the lower, stiffer suspension. The V-8 had good power, too, though without turbocharging it didn\u2019t kick hard from a stop like today\u2019s engines. Renntech built 60 of these cars<\/strong>, and their performance still holds up 28 years later.<\/p>\n\n
![\"1957](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962805_l.webp\" "\\"1957")
<\/p>\n
1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL roadster<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1957](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962812_l.webp\" "\\"1957")
<\/p>\n
1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL roadster<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1957](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962808_l.webp\" "\\"1957")
<\/p>\n
1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL roadster<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/span>1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL roadster<\/span><\/h2>\nFive months ago, this 1957 300 SL roadster fresh out of a junkyard, sold to an RM Sotheby\u2019s auction for $1.19 million<\/strong>. It was so valuable because the 300 SL was valuable in general and because this particular car was one of only 39 built with the knockoff hubcaps. The car hadn\u2019t run since the 1970s as its battery was last changed in 1972. It was missing also the grille, the passenger seat and numerous other parts. After the auction, the car went to the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center in Long Beach, Calif., to get it running, and five months later I was driving it around a racetrack. The Classic Center didn\u2019t have to rebuild the engine, but a lot of work went into making the car roadworthy, including the replacement of all rubber components. The shop also had a matching passenger seat in a matching state of disrepair, and while both seats look beaten down by the weather, they have new stuffing under weathered upholstery.<\/p>\nEven though it was easily the slowest of the bunch, it was an incredible treat to drive this car. The 300 SL\u2019s 3.0-liter inline-6 originally put out 215 hp thanks in part to a very early application of direct injection, but a rep from the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center<\/strong> estimated that maybe 150 of those ponies remain in this car\u2019s stable. The 300 SL was the fastest convertible in the world in its day, but here I couldn\u2019t even keep up with the camera car, partially because Mercedes didn\u2019t want me to rev it over 4,500 rpm and partially because the power built rather slowly. The steering didn\u2019t help either. The steering wheel is so big that it rubbed against my lap and the manual steering was heavy even at speed. Too many laps in this car and you\u2019re chancing a pulled intercostal muscle.<\/p>\nMy laps in the SL amounted to a shakedown session to work out the remaining bugs that had infested this car over decades of storage. While it thankfully had a synchromesh 4-speed manual transmission, finding second gear proved problematic when downshifting. The car lost power due to fuel starvation from sloshing the gas around in the corners, and the right rear brake locked up on me once. The car had so much patina that the owner and the Classic Center hadn\u2019t even cleaned the windshield of its storage grime. That made it hard to see on the way forward on parts of the track as we were driving near sunset. Nonetheless, driving it was a singular experience that made me appreciate the engineering and quality that went into the original.<\/p>\n
\n
![\"1955](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962842_l.webp\" "\\"1955")
<\/p>\n
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR W 196 S<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1955](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962839_l.webp\" "\\"1955")
<\/p>\n
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR W 196 S<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"1955](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962833_l.webp\" "\\"1955")
<\/p>\n
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR W 196 S<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
![\"2009](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962781_l.webp\" "\\"2009")
<\/p>\n![\"2009](\"https:\/\/images.hgmsites.net\/lrg\/mercedes-benz_100962773_l.webp\" "\\"2009")
<\/p>\n